China’s air pollution goes off the charts

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China’s capital city faced a third day cloaked in a choking, acrid smog today
as seasonal pollution and adverse weather conditions befoul the air and make
breathing hazardous.

With the atmosphere visibly thickened by pollutants and a taste of coal
rasping painfully at throats and noses, children and the elderly were warned
to remain indoors for the safety of their lungs.

Many Beijing residents have opted to do the same as the official reckoning of
air quality soared off the top of the index on Saturday evening and an
unofficial gauge run from the grounds of the United States Embassy